What if Maui in Hawaii was an island in Africa?

A view of the Maui Island in Hawaii after the wildfire destroyed property killing over 111 people. [AP Photo]

August 8 seemed like a preview of hell in Maui, Hawaii, as fire swept across the historic town.

The death toll has hit 111, with over 1,000 unaccounted for, while more than 2,000 houses and businesses were gutted in the fire that spread for days over more than 2,100 acres in the US territory.

The huge losses and damage have largely been blamed on inefficiency on part of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, which did not activate an outdoor siren system when the fire, now thought to have resulted from an electric fault, started. An already heated atmosphere, dry grass and leaves, prolonged drought, low humidity and a windy Maui island provided an ideal situation for a wildfire.

The island was not known to be prone to wildfires, until recently. It was previously a wetland. Now, because of its tourism potential and accessibility for transportation of materials or agricultural produce, there has been infiltration in all manners, enabled through migration motivated by business, religion and several other interests. A replacement of indigenous plants, including the now dominant grass type blamed for faster spread of the fire.

And there have been more disasters in Greece, Italy, Spain, Dubai, Canada, California, India, China in form of wildfires, storms or flooding, landslides, all deadly and destructive. Videos show the extent of the destruction and victims' suffering. Like happens in many disasters, homes, lives, historical assets and cultural heritage, sources of livelihood, infrastructure were lost. A historic town of Lahaina is now a pale shadow of itself. The trauma from the disaster may take decades to heal.

Now, take a sub-Saharan Africa country or a small island in the global South and expose to such disaster. Maybe the first alarm would have been a scream, one enough to cause confusion and lead to deadly stampedes. Instead of escaping from the fire, some would have run to their houses to grab a title deed or an academic certificate, knowing how much their lives are pegged on such, in countries where records are rarely digitised. The death toll would have hit thousands, knowing the likelihood of informal settlements, poor technology and muscle to inform and evacuate people before disaster, and more.

Then identification of bodies would have been another source of trauma before land grabbing, rebuilding, returning to work, and dealing with shock. Many would have remained in IDP camps for years, abandoned and at the mercy of well-wishers. Others would have migrated and be refugees, with separated families, some children and adults walking without identification. Even after the dust has settled in the Southern after Cyclone Fred last February to March, people are counting losses. An innocent Africa suffers most in disasters, yet it contributes only 4 per cent of global carbon emission.

Kenya hosts the Africa Climate Summit in the first week of September, and it is from here that the continent's talking points for the COP28 in Dubai will largely be decided.

African leaders must speak to the issues that touch the continent and push for solutions that address climate mitigation and resilience building locally in manners that involve everyone.

The West is cunningly deploying climate imperialism, and may want Africa to toe some line for the continent to get bits and pieces of reparations, which are inadequate.

Africa must push for more investment in renewable energy because it is sustainable and the continent has a lot of potential. Africa must push its own agenda. Disasters are surely going to come. Africa's preparedness and resilience must be enhanced.